'Otis' Will Screen at Prestigious Festival

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Burbank, Calif. (February 4, 2008) – Warner Home Video (WHV) announced today that the provocative, black-comedy OTIS, the fourth feature under the Raw Feed production banner, will have its world premiere on opening day of the 15^th edition of the South by Southwest (SXSW) Film Conference & Festival in Austin, Texas.  The film, along with Columbia Pictures’ 21 (starring Kevin Spacey, Kate Bosworth), was selected from a record number of entries to kick off the prestigious nine day festival March 7 with a special midnight showing.

The release plan for OTIS, the fourth feature under the Raw Feed production banner, may include a limited theatrical or midnight show run prior to being released in an uncut version on Blu-ray Hi-Def and DVD this summer. The first three Raw Feed films have sold more than one million DVD units to date.

“We are thrilled that OTIS will be premiering at SXSW,” said Jeff Baker, WHV’s Senior VP and General Manager for Theatrical Catalog. “The festival has a long history of making bold choices in their selection process and it’s an honor to be included in that mix.” 

“Otis is a satire of a ‘Leave it to Beaver’ world colliding with the gore-porn world of a modern-day serial killer. Revenge and justice are sought -- and found -- in a blackly comedic way. Otis quietly talks about the politics and morality of this American moment,” said director/producer Tony Krantz. “I am delighted that SXSW has chosen us for the midnight show on opening night, signaling the festival's sense of fun, satirical humor and an embrace of a new film out of the ordinary.” 

Produced and directed by Krantz (Mulholland Drive, Sublime, “24”) and written by Thomas Schnauz (“Reaper” “X-Files”) and Erik Jendresen (Sublime, “Band of Brothers”), the film stars Daniel Stern (Home Alone, City Slickers), Illeana Douglas (Ghost World, Factory Girl), Kevin Pollak (A Few Good Men, The Usual Suspects), Jere Burns (Beverly Hills Cop II, “Dear John”), Ashley Johnson (Fast Food Nation, What Women Want) and Bostin Christopher (Unbreakable) as “Otis.”  John Shiban (Rest Stop, “Supernatural”) and Daniel Myrick (Believers, The Blair Witch Project) are also producers.

OTIS is a story of suburban America gone haywire. In the midst of a serial abductor/killer’s rampage, a beautiful young teen, Riley Lawson (Ashley Johnson), goes missing. When her desperate parents, Will and Kate (Daniel Stern and Illeana Douglas), are contacted by her kidnapper, an insufferable FBI Special Agent (Jere Burns) takes charge of the case.

But, from deep within the psychopathic subterranean world created by Otis (Bostin Christopher), Riley turns the tables on her tormentor, manages to escape and to contact her parents. Fed up with the tragi-comic inability of the FBI to find their girl, Will, Kate, and Riley’s brother, Reed (Jared Kusnitz) decide to take matters - and justice - into their own hands. But when Otis’s brother, Elmo (Kevin Pollak), shows up unexpectedly, the Lawsons find themselves mired in one of the more unusual and macabre consequences of vigilantism.

Far from proclaiming ‘Mission Accomplished,’ the backed-in-a-corner Lawsons will further complicate their already deadly predicament with a surprising, unfortunate and frankly hilarious final choice.

Films under the “Raw Feed” banner are a mix of thriller, horror, and sci-fi with a strong psychological and dramatic edge, and are as much psychological as they are thriller or horror genre.  The films have been released on DVD in rated and unrated versions, featuring innovative extra features and bonus content.  The “Raw Feed” label originated from the creative minds of Tony Krantz, Daniel Myrick and John Shiban.  The first film in the series, Rest Stop (written and directed by Shiban), debuted on DVD in October 2006, followed by Sublime (directed by Krantz) in March 2007 and Believers (directed by Myrick) in October 2007.

Be sure and check out horror.com's exclusive on-set interviews